Atletico Madrid defeated Malaga 2-0 to secure their fourth consecutive win and regain third place in La Liga on Saturday.
Koke scored in the first half and Filipe Luis sealed the victory in the second to move Atletico one point ahead of Sevilla, who host relegation-wary Sporting Gijon on Sunday.
Malaga controlled possession from the start at their La Rosaleda Stadium but it was Atletico who capitalised on their chances, with Koke and Luis scoring from inside the area.
Luis popped up with his first goal of the campaign -- completing a fine move by expertly lifting the ball over Carlos Kameni with his left foot in the 74th minute.
Diego Simeone's team won three straight league games going into the international break to get back in the fight for an automatic spot in the Champions League group stage next season.
Atletico had been outside of the top three since the 10th round, and dropped as low as sixth after briefly leading the league in the earlier rounds.
It was the sixth game without a win for Malaga, who dropped to 16th.